Rory McIlroy Skips FedEx St. Jude Amid Tour Championship Format Shift
Ben Smith 
The PGA Tour is heading towards its conclusion, with the St. Jude Championship the first of three play-offs that will determine the FedEx Cup champion.
The calendar will see the next three events - the BMW Championship and Tour Championship in Georgia follow the St. Jude - act as play-offs for the FedEx Cup, but owing to changes in the rules, McIlroy has opted out of this week's event.
Free Bets golf expert Ben Smith has taken a closer look at why McIlroy will miss the event, and what it means going forward.
Rory McIlroy has opted to skip this week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship, the opening leg of the PGA Tour’s three-event playoff series that will determine this season’s FedEx Cup champion.
The Northern Irishman currently sits second in the FedEx Cup standings after a three-win season, highlighted by victories at The PLAYERS Championship and the long-awaited Masters, which completed his career Grand Slam.
In previous years, skipping a playoff event could prove costly, as opening positions at the TOUR Championship were determined by FedEx Cup standings, leaving some players up to 10 strokes behind before a shot was hit. But with starting strokes scrapped for this year’s finale, that disadvantage no longer applies.
The staggered start had been in force since 2019. The top seed would begin at 10-under-par, the second-ranked player at 8-under, and so on down the field.
That idea was introduced in order to simplify the format, ensuring the FedEx Cup winner also won the tournament. But the system drew criticism from fans and players for feeling artificial and often creating confusion about who had played the best golf over four rounds.
Last year, for instance, Scottie Scheffler began with a two-shot advantage. He went on to win the FedEx Cup despite being outscored over 72 holes by both Collin Morikawa and Sahith Theegala, a scenario that highlighted the flaws in the format.
This season, the event is reverting to a traditional stroke-play setup at the TOUR Championship, meaning all 30 players will start on level terms. There will be no head starts, no adjusted leaderboards, just four rounds of golf to determine the FedEx Cup champion.
With the elimination of starting strokes, McIlroy’s second-place position in the standings no longer carries any competitive advantage once play begins at East Lake. In that context, his decision not to make the trip to Memphis makes sense.
His place inside the top 30 is secured, and the incentive to grind through all three events has been significantly reduced.
McIlroy’s absence leaves Scheffler as the clear, standalone favourite with sports betting sites to triumph at TPC Southwind this week. The world number one is generally priced at 11/4 to emerge victorious in his first start since he won the Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Xander Schauffele, last year’s runner-up at TPC Southwind, comes next after Scheffler on the golf betting boards. Justin Thomas, the 2020 champion, shares third-favourite status alongside Tommy Fleetwood, with both considered strong contenders based on course history and recent form.
Fleetwood is still chasing his maiden PGA TOUR victory, and he may take inspiration from Cameron Young, who finally broke through for his first win at last week’s Wyndham Championship.
Young’s march to the title on Sunday was never in doubt, as he tied the -22 tournament scoring record and won by six strokes.
It was also a great week for Chris Kirk and Matti Schmid, both of whom earned their spot in the top 70 thanks to their performances at Sedgefield and will tee it up in Memphis.
